kinda a unique situation... UPDATE POST 44!! :)

[kcjr1125]

So to make a long story short my wife was raised by her best friends parents when she was growing up while her own biological parents got their act together. These people are grade A family first types and did a very good deed in taking my wife in. they made sure she was top of her class, made sure she went to college and got her degrees and is now a very successful person in a fortune 500 company and shes only 30 years old. She saw them as her "other parents and while i was courting my wife (this was while we were juniors in high school)they made it VERY clear that if i broke her heart i would be buried 6ft deep . I remember when i would go visit my soon to be future wife that the dad (his name is John) would ALWAYS and i mean ALWAYS would be on the couch watching John Wayne movies and other westerns. This man is a HUGE John Wayne Fan and probably has every single john Wayne movie ever made.

We ended up moving out together and started our own lives, moved out of state and didnt keep in touch too much other than the thanksgiving and Christmas calls and occasional visits and few years later moved back to Cali.

So heres where it gets good. Mid November while searching for 13th anniversary present for the misses (Ruger Vaquero in high polish stainless with Ivory grips in 45LC) i also happened to see a Ruger New Vaquero John Wayne commerative piece. When i saw it i FELL in love with it, i mean the thing is BEAUTIFUL! it has factory engraving, beautiful wood grips with "JW" on them and John Waynes signature in 24k gold on top of the bbl. It looked like it never had been fired or even touched for that matter. needless to say I HAD TO HAVE IT! I asked the gentleman the price and layaway terms hoping i can pay it off in time for XMAS.

Well i wasnt able to pay it off in time but as of yesterday it is now in my possession. I spoke with the wife and we both agree that we should give this beautiful piece to John as a BIG thank you for putting up with us and raising her right. My dilema is i do not know if they are anti or not. John im not to worried about, he was in the ARMY but his wife is... well shes the one im worried about. Now she isnt a liberal by any means and she is a republican but im just not sure of her stance on guns IN the home, she IS NOT AFFRAID TO speak her mind which is something that she instilled in my wife. THEY ARE BOTH VERY VERY strong women.

I want this to be a surprise and just come over with some "late christmas presents" and present the Ruger but i dont want Johns Wife to go "GET THAT OUT OF MY HOUSE". I dont believe she is an anti but she does have grandchildren in the house pretty often and i think she would maybe not want it in fears that they may get to it.

So what should i do? should i call her and tell her my plans and see what she says or risk it and make it a complete surprise? there is a 50/50 chance that either she will be overjoyed with the gift or that she will scold me.

[kcjr1125]

oh yeah here are some stock pics;

[sealocan]

Personally I would risk it, but I would try and get John alone ,maybe ask him to come outside to check " some problem" in the trunk of your car, Then thank him BIG for all he did and give him the revolver.

ask him to open the gift & then
explain that when you saw it you remembered that he was John Wayne fan and a little like John Wayne himself (big & a little scary but always doing the right thing.).

I think he'll be touched by the meaning

if there is a chance that he won't be allowed to keep it
(HE will know right away whether he can keep it in the house or not.)

he will thank you and let you know*which way the wind blows and possibly*give it back your family.

now you can do in front of his wife I would just be concerned about upsetting her by "bringing a gun into her house" in case she is anti gun / possibly just has a very irrational fear of guns.

Good luck.


(and by the way I'm a big John Wayne fan and even look like him ,size wise, just in case you need a home for that beautiful revolver.)

:-)

[spamsucker]

No gift from the heart to people that truly cared about you or for her will be met with negativity. These are obviously very special and moral people who know how to give and I'll bet to receive with humility as well. I bet you $20 that even if they are anti-gun they would thank you for the gift and try to find some way that they can both accept the gift and maintain their (hypothetical) hoplophobia.

I bet you another $10 that they're not anti-gun. Very very few right wing-ish types slant that way. It's an illogical position that doesn't fit the paradigm of a person that identifies with traditional conservative positions on personal responsibility, freedom, limited big brother, etc... those are all traits of independence and personal fortitude which are totally harmonious with owning or at least not philosophically hating firearms. They're not very harmonious with philosophically disliking weapons in most any form.

[Old4eyes]

You might include a lockable gun box (gunvault or whatever) so that it will slow down the grandkids.

[Tank 57]

Give it to him without worrying about.Willing to bet it goes great.

[iluvmycolt]

Personally I would risk it, but I would try and get John alone ,maybe ask him to come outside to check " some problem" in the trunk of your car, Then thank him BIG for all he did and give him the revolver.

ask him to open the gift & then
explain that when you saw it you remembered that he was John Wayne fan and a little like John Wayne himself (big & a little scary but always doing the right thing.).

I think he'll be touched by the meaning

if there is a chance that he won't be allowed to keep it
(HE will know right away whether he can keep it in the house or not.)

he will thank you and let you know*which way the wind blows and possibly*give it back your family.

now you can do in front of his wife I would just be concerned about upsetting her by "bringing a gun into her house" in case she is anti gun / possibly just has a very irrational fear of guns.

Good luck.


(and by the way I'm a big John Wayne fan and even look like him ,size wise, just in case you need a home for that beautiful revolver.)

:-)

Sounds like a good plan to me, but with the exception of the last paragraph
Let us know how it goes and good luck.

[Bansh88]

Don't worry about the mother. Even if she had a problem with it, she'll understand the sentimental value of it.

[Moemoe1]

Give it to him in a lockable display case! Without ammunition, make it look like a decorative piece. A gun without ammunition is just a brick update us To see how it goes.

[kcjr1125]

thanks guys! great ideas here. Ya im definetley going to give it to him, no question about it. Im sure it will go well and he will be very happy to receive it. I am planning on giving it to them in a lock box but i have to include ammo with it, a gun with no ammo is just a piece of metal that looks pretty and this gun shuuureee is purdy!

[IVC]

I would reverse it and talk to John's wife alone first. She will be able to keep the secret, so the surprise won't be spoiled if she agrees. If she doesn't agree, you won't end up in the middle of a family issue.

You can always later tell John that you got him this present, but that it ended up being "inappropriate for their house" (a code phrase.)

[SkyHawk]

+1 for including a good pistol vault like a V-line top draw. Will set you back another $150 though. Or at least get a good Pelican case that can accept two locks. I would also include a Remington anti rust microfiber cloth, so he can wipe it down everytime he handles it. It would be a shame to see any blems on that finish from skin salts...

[TurboChrisB]

Your wife needs to discuss it with her "mother" and find out.

[NoNOS67]

I'd be shocked if they were anti, but I guess you never know these days. Your heart is in the right place and I'm sure they will know that. Please be sure to let us know how it goes!

[kcjr1125]

ya im going to have my misses talk to his misses and see whats up. +1 on the cloth idea too.

Now i just thought about something else to now. What in the off chance he is ineligible to own firearms?

so lets say that she is all for it and he accpets, we go to do transfer and he forgot he had a thing in his record that he forgot made him ineligible to own firearms and is denied at time of DROS. can he get into trouble? would the pistol be confiscated or can i get in trouble?

Now i definetley have to talk to the wife to ensure he is allowed to have one. he is a standup guy and im 99% sure he is eligible but we were all young at one point in our lives and made stupid mistakes!